Data from: Rapid sex-specific evolution of age at maturity is shaped by genetic architecture in Atlantic salmon

• Main Authors: Czorlich, Yann, Aykanat, Tutku, Erkinaro, Jaakko, Orell, Panu, Primmer, Craig R.
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2019
• Subjects: Salmo salar; life-history evolution; evolutionary genetics; Atlantic salmon
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7hm4708

Understanding the mechanisms by which populations adapt to their environments is a fundamental aim in biology. However, it remains challenging to identify the genetic basis of traits, provide evidence of genetic changes and quantify phenotypic responses. Age at maturity in Atlantic salmon represents an ideal trait to study contemporary adaptive evolution as it has been associated with a single locus in the vgll3 region, and has also strongly changed in recent decades. Here, we provide an empirical example of contemporary adaptive evolution of a large effect locus driving contrasting sex-specific evolutionary responses at the phenotypic level. We identified an 18% decrease in the vgll3 allele associated with late maturity (L) in a large and diverse salmon population over 36 years, induced by sex-specific selection during the sea migration. Those genetic changes resulted in a significant evolutionary response in males only, due to sex-specific dominance patterns and vgll3 allelic effects. The vgll3 allelic and dominance effects differed greatly in a second population and were likely to generate different selection and evolutionary patterns. Our study highlights the importance of knowledge of genetic architecture to better understand fitness trait evolution and phenotypic diversity. It also emphasizes the potential role of adaptive evolution in the trend toward earlier maturation observed in numerous Atlantic salmon populations worldwide. Adults data Data associated with the article: Czorlich Y., Aykanat T., Erkinaro J., Orell P. & Primmer C.R. (2018) Rapid sex-specific evolution of age at maturity is shaped by genetic architecture in Atlantic salmon. Nature Ecology & Evolution. Table including the genotypes of adults (row) at 190 loci and additional informations (e.g. spawning year, sex) Adults_data.xlsx Juveniles_data Data associated with the article: Czorlich Y., Aykanat T., Erkinaro J., Orell P. & Primmer C.R. (2018) Rapid sex-specific evolution of age at maturity is shaped by genetic architecture ...